The Cabrini lacrosse team’s season is just beginning, as they try to continue the outstanding play that they have become known for.
The team is led by head coach Steve Colfer and has a team of young stars ready to step up for the Cavaliers.
“We are excited about this year. We have a lot of new faces due to 16 players graduating, but we have a young team,” Colfer said.
Colfer hopes that “we can be the best team we can be and hopefully it will lead us back to the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) championship.”
The team has four pre-season All-Americans with offensive standouts Casey Grugan and Paul Skulski and defensive players Anthony Mazza and Steve Heaps. Colfer described Grugan as a “leader and one of our captains,” pointing out that he is a two-time Colonial State Athletic Conference player of the year. Along with these players, sophomore defenseman John McSorely is expected to be a major part of the team’s success as well.
The toughest games for the team, according to Colfer, will be Roanoke, Gettysburg and Haverford, which are all top-10 teams that they will play early in the schedule.
The first of these match-ups will be a showdown at Haverford, this Saturday, Feb. 27. Colfer said of the game, “It’s turned into a local rivalry and it’s a game that our players look forward to every year. It’s good competition and it’s become a Philadelphia Main Line rivalry.”
The team shows a real sense of unity, as every player on the team feels like an important component of the team’s success.
“Everyone on the team will be playing a big part this year regardless of position or whether they are a starter or not. We are a team and we all need each other to be successful this season and beyond. Right now my focus is to help our team be successful and I’m doing everything I possibly can to make that happen,” Bryan Churchey, junior history and political science major, said.
Senior midfielder Casey Grugan is optimistic about the upcoming season.
“I am very excited about this season. Not only it being my last as a cavalier, but the talent that we possess will be dangerous for other teams to stop. I feel that we can make a run this year for a championship,” Grugan said.
“Coach Colfer tells us almost every day that we have the potential to do great things if we work hard. I think that’s true,” Churchey said.
The Cavaliers take on Haverford in an away lacrosse matchup on Saturday at 3 p.m.
“We look forward to a successful season and having the students come out and support us. Just hopefully the snow will melt, to make that happen,” Colfer said.
